In pictures: Occupy London protest swells

Despite starting as a single demonstration in a US financial centre, the "Occupy Wall Street" protests have since spawned a global movement, as citizens of countries across the world came out to voice their frustration with what they deem to be shortfalls with democratic political processes.

They are angry at those they perceive to be "corporate criminals", who continued to profit while their alleged misdeeds crashed the planet's interwoven economy, leaving hundreds of thousands unemployed and facing homelessness.

In just one such example, several hundred protesters, young and old, have camped out in the inclement London weather since Saturday October 15, turning the churchyard in front of the famed St Paul's Cathedral into a vibrant embodiment of democracy in action.

A mass rally on November 5, the 407th anniversary of Guy Fawkes' attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament - a plot led by Catholic religious extremists intended to strike back against lawmakers who were endorsing the persecution of their religious minority - attracted thousands of protesters.